The Federal Government has clarified that indigenous languages have not been banned in Nigerian schools, but their use as the principal medium of instruction has been adjusted to better prepare learners for national examinations conducted in English.
Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, said the policy shift followed a review of the former framework, which mandated the use of mother tongue as the primary language of instruction in the early years of schooling. Speaking during an interview on ARISE News, Alausa dismissed reports of a ban, noting that government merely reassessed its effectiveness.
“We have not banned the use of indigenous languages in schools. What we did was a SWOT analysis of what is happening,” the minister said.
He explained that although mother tongue instruction has educational benefits, implementation across the country had been uneven. According to him, several regions failed to adopt the policy, while others applied it excessively, creating disparities in learning outcomes.
“The South-West, South-East and South-South did not implement it. North-Central also did not. The North-West and North-East implemented it, but it was over-implemented,” Alausa stated.
The minister stressed that Nigerian languages would remain part of the curriculum, as pupils would still study one indigenous language at the primary, junior secondary and senior secondary levels.
“We are proud of our languages,” he added.
His clarification follows the Federal Government’s decision in November 2025 to discontinue the policy that made indigenous languages the main medium of instruction nationwide, a move that sparked reactions among education stakeholders.
Educationist Anthony Otaigbe described the change as “a step backwards for Nigeria’s education system,” while the Bible Society of Nigeria urged the government to reconsider, warning that some local languages risk extinction without active use.
Alausa, however, said the original policy was only intended for Primary One to Primary Three before transitioning to English. He noted that literacy and numeracy assessments revealed that areas which over-implemented mother tongue instruction were performing below regions that taught mainly in English.
“What we are saying now is that we will go back to English as the language of instruction to ensure standardisation and train our children to be globally competitive,” the minister said.
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